Chris Waller seven-handed in G1 Qld Oaks
A seven-horse assault on the Queensland Oaks is not what Chris Waller originally planned.
Sydney’s premier trainer kept paying up for some of his lesser performed fillies uncertain how the Eagle Farm track would play, believing it could produce an upset.
With the race on Saturday now moved to Doomben, Waller’s confidence is back with his three leading lights, Egg Tart, Dawn Wall and Oklahoma Girl.
But he will let the others run believing they deserve their places.
“Egg Tart and Dawn Wall are the best two on current form,” Waller said.
“A lot of people might ask why we have seven runners. The simple fact is when the race was at Eagle Farm I thought it might be a year when there may be an upset.
“It’s different now but we decided to take the next step and run them.
“It’s harder for the lesser four than Egg Tart, Dawn Wall and Oklahoma Girl who are more experienced.
“But it’s their last chance as three-year-old fillies to get black-type in a Group One race.”
Egg Tart goes into the race off a win in the Group One Schweppes Oaks (2000m) at Morphettville in Adelaide on May 6 while Dawn Wall is a last-start winner of the Listed Gold Coast Bracelet (1800m).
Oklahoma Girl ran second to Kenedna in the recent Group Two Doomben Roses (2000m).
The Darren Weir-trained Kenedna was runner-up to Egg Tart in Adelaide and is playing second fiddle in markets at $4.80 compared to her rival who is the $3.20 favourite.
Dawn Wall is at $8 and Oklahoma Girl $9 with Invincibella, Cross Stitch and Baysa at $26 and Kirini the outsider of the Waller septet at $51.
After the Schweppes Oaks, Egg Tart was given a barrier trial at Rosehill to keep her ticking over.
With the move to Doomben, the Oaks has been shortened from 2400m to 2200 as it was two years ago when the Waller-trained Winx began her Group One-winning sequence which is now at 12.
Waller will not make any comparisons to the champion but is enamoured with Egg Tart who has won her past five starts on various types of ground.
“She can handle the wet better than a lot of other horses but it was a good track in Adelaide,” he said.
“Her second dam (Born To Be Queen) won a Metropolitan over 2600 metres so I would have had no problems with her over the longer distance.
“Dawn Wall has done plenty of work and Hugh Bowman is happy with her.”
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